Muzzleloader Beginner-Need Advice

[firme67]

I would like to get into muzzleloader hunting due to the better chances of drawing a tag in my state (CO). However, I have never shot a muzzle loader before, and know very little about them at all. What I know (think I know): in CO to ML hunt it has to be open sights, no optics, and we can't use saboted bullets.

I have been looking through the Cabelas Shooting Catalog and all the options there is. If you could all chime in with reccommendations on rifles, bullets, and powder loads that would be awesome.

I think the "PowerBelt" bullets would be a good option. As far as rifles: is there a lot of difference between Knight, CVA, Vortek, and TC muzzleloaders. I don't want to get the cheapest, but not necessarily the most expensive.

THanks in advance.

 

[drago9900]

A lot depends on what your hunting, a Lyman Great Plains in .54 will be a great start. It has a 1 in 66 twist perfect for patched round ball. Out to 100 yards it will take almost anything in north America, Maybe not a Kodiak. Round ball has been used for centuries with great success. A 50 will work too but anything a .50 will do a .54 will do better. I prefer the traditional rifles. No matter which you choose it must be cleaned soon after shooting to prevent rust as the fouling is corrosive. Good luck.

 

[jrdolall]

I don't know the laws in CO regarding caliber and type of rifle but your options are endless. Some of the newer "muzzleloaders" are darned close to being a regular rifle and easily reach out past 200 yards.
The major issue with black powder is cleaning. It must be done soon after firing the gun and it isn't just a wipe down but a thorough cleaning. I would look for the rifle that has the easiest to remove breach plug as some of them can be very difficult. As far as accuracy goes I think any of the major manufacturers will be similar. Probably just depends on what TV show you watch.

 

[rodwha]

For my first rifle I chose a Lyman's .50 cal Deerstalker. I liked the shorter barrel (24") and lighter weight (7.5 lbs) as I wanted something I could carry around all weekend and that was handy enough for thicker cover. It also has a recoil pad that I thought I may want. But it doesn't really kick that hard at all.

Similar rifles I looked at were the Pedersoli Country Hunter and Traditions Deerhunter.

This rifle comes with fiber optic sights. I'm not sure if they are OK for CO.

I've recently tried 320 grn Lee REALs. My first shot went waaaaay left. I tried a felt wad and the next two were nearly at POA and very close to each other. Since this barrel has the deeper grooves for patched round balls it could be that the REALs didn't quite fill in the grooves allowing blow by. It's not uncommon.

Patched round balls (PRB) are very effective against medium game, and some even use them for elk with shorter ranges. But if larger critters are in the game plan a conical may be a better option as it won't reduce your range and still have better penetrating capabilities.

I chose .50 cal as it's the most common caliber, and a ball will handle most hunting. And if not a conical can takes it's place.

Many hunt elk with .54 and .58 cal PRB's and would recommend a larger caliber than .50.

 

[frontiergander]

CVA Optima with the non thumbhole stock. To heck with powerbelts as well, you want a solid bullet thats holds together and that will be this one www.thorbullets.com

 

[OH_Spartan]

I will add a vote for cva. Good value. I have the accura. I think it is the ugliest gun I've ever seen but it is well balanced, easy to hold and a perfect fit for me. It is very accurate with a wide range of projectiles at 100 yds.

I don't know co laws on projectiles, But hornady sells sabots that fit 240 grn 44-cal xtp to a 50-cal. I like those bc i already have them on hand.

Ps: Always put anti sieze on the breech plug.

 

[Yarddog]

A 1:48 twist will shoot both a pactched RB & conical,, At least my TC New Englander will ; )
Y/D

 

[frontiergander]

Colorado rules we have:

No sabots, no pellets, no scopes, no smokeless powder.

Basically you are limited to open sights ' fiber optics are ok' loose powder and conical bullets.

 

[Dadof10]

Lyman .54 caliber GPR. You will not regret it. Last year I shot my biggest deer ever with mine.

 

[firme67]

Thank you all for the ideas, I will keep researching. Still have a while before I need to decide.

 

[BullSlinger]

Firme67, you going to hunt Elk or Deer? If Elk you will want larger Cal. IMHO.

 

[frontiergander]

.50cal will do everything, especially when you are using conicals.

 

[Crawdad1]

I second the Lyman Great Plains Rifle, a great rifle for anyone regardless of how much experience you have with a muzzleloader.

 

[Pancho]

Firme, There's some questions that you must first answer for yourself:
Are you interested at all in history and hunting traditions? Many of us are interested in history and wouldn't think about hunting with anything but a sidelock (the real hardcore would only consider a flintlock).
What will you be hunting? Squirrels, deer, elk, buffalo? East of the Mississippi white tail,blackbear,hogs and squirrels are the most popular game. We do have some elk being introduced but it still isn't widespread enough to be considered.
What kind of terrain and at what yardage would a typical and ethical shot be taken where you will hunt?
Provide the answers and we can help you further.
After you answer these questions the next question will be caliber. 50 cal. is the most available and offers the most choices. Any other caliber will, in most areas, have to be ordered. In fact off hand I don't know of any modern inlines offered in anything other than 50 and 58 cal.

 

[firme67]

I would just be hunting Mule Deer on the CO eastern Plains. 150-175 yds would be the range I would limit myself too. I am thinking .50 cal, and am really not looking to get into ML for the tradition. So I am looking at the more modern style of rifle.

THanks again. keep the advice coming.

 

[Pancho]

Good reply it gives all that is needed to advise except price range. If money is no object I'd look into the Redemption by LHR very innovative . If money is an object, and it usually is, there are too many inlines to choose from the main classifications being bolt action and break-down action, the break-down action is more prevalent today for it's ease of use. As for caliber you are pretty well limited to 50 cal. although Harrington Richardson made and maybe still makes a break-action 58 cal. Although I've never hunted mulies the 50 cal. will shoot flatter than the 58 at the yardages you mentioned and will be lethal enough.
According to Col. law your projectile choices are going to be Minie ball, Maxiball, and skirted bullet. Choose your weapon and devote time and money to determine what projectile and charge your weapon shoots well at the yardage you expect to be hunting at.

 

[Rattus58]

For my first rifle I chose a Lyman's .50 cal Deerstalker. I liked the shorter barrel (24") and lighter weight (7.5 lbs) as I wanted something I could carry around all weekend and that was handy enough for thicker cover. It also has a recoil pad that I thought I may want. But it doesn't really kick that hard at all.

Similar rifles I looked at were the Pedersoli Country Hunter and Traditions Deerhunter.

This rifle comes with fiber optic sights. I'm not sure if they are OK for CO.

I've recently tried 320 grn Lee REALs. My first shot went waaaaay left. I tried a felt wad and the next two were nearly at POA and very close to each other. Since this barrel has the deeper grooves for patched round balls it could be that the REALs didn't quite fill in the grooves allowing blow by. It's not uncommon.

Patched round balls (PRB) are very effective against medium game, and some even use them for elk with shorter ranges. But if larger critters are in the game plan a conical may be a better option as it won't reduce your range and still have better penetrating capabilities.

I chose .50 cal as it's the most common caliber, and a ball will handle most hunting. And if not a conical can takes it's place.

Many hunt elk with .54 and .58 cal PRB's and would recommend a larger caliber than .50.

54 or especially 58 caliber will easily do the job for almost anything I be thinking you'd hunt in the Americas. I can say one thing though, if you're planning on round ball, and there is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of with the 58, almost 300 grains, speedy, and punches a dang big hole, but a word of caution... I have a 58 big boar with 1:48 twist and also green mountain barrels at 1:70... Two things about that... one velocity is better with 1:70 and that improves downrange trajectory and to some degree maybe accuracy.

Here is my advise if you want to be hunting ethically... if given the choice, choose a twist that will maximize the bullet you are going to be using...... conicals 1-18 to 1-30 maybe and roundball.... 1-60 on up.

Aloha...

 

[Loyalist Dave]

If you go "traditional" sidelock, you will find variations from 1:24 up to 1:72. 1:48 appears to be the most often encountered twist rate, and I have found it shoots patched round ball well, as well as some of the conicals. Sabots tend to like a faster twist.

Whatever you choose, read the little booklet that comes with the rifle, and look at what the maker recommends. i.e. ... CVA recommends their power belt bullets over sabots in some CVA inlines, and yes that puts more $$ into that company's pocket, but it may also be due to their finding that type of bullet works very well in their rifle. Companies have a vested interest in having satisfied customers, so they are not going to guide you to an inferior product combination just for cash... at least not for long.

I have found Thompson Center Maxi-Hunter slugs work well in Thompson Center products. I have found that patched round ball works well in the rifles that are sold as being for those projectiles. Try the recommended loads and projectiles first, before you experiment.

LD

 

[firme67]

Ok. So I am still trying to decide which muzzle loader rifle to purchase. I am only interested in the new in-line style. Could you please give me any info on the advantages/disadvantages, differences, etc in the following models. They all look relatively the same to me. I don't necessarily need the best but don't want the cheapest either. However, $ is not the deciding factor. Thanks.

Thompson Center: Omega vs Triumph vs Pro Hunter
VS
CVA: Accura Mountain Rifle vs Accura vs Optima vs Wolf
VS
Vortek: Ultra Light vs Pursuit vs StrikerFire

 

[Malachi Leviticus Blue]

It is pretty hard to go wrong with TC they tend to have good quality.
Out of the examples you listed, I only have personal experience with the TC Encore/ Pro Hunter.
Ii is a great gun and I doubt you wood ever regret buying one.
I peronaly know 4 guys who swear by theirs and they convinced me.
Practically speaking its the best muzzle loading rifle I've used. I still have fun shooting my flint and percusion caps but I would count on my Encore to function smoothly and flawlessly every time.
Here in Michigan we have a shotgun only zone in Southern MI which means no rifles for Deer hunting, but muzzleloaders are allowed. A couple of my buddies put away their slug guns and now rely entirely on their TC Encores for deer hunting durring the regular firearms deer season.

 

[Temp430]

I would recommend you go with a modern in-line muzzle loader. I bought my youngster a Thompson Center Impact for under $250. I wasn't expecting much from it and was quite pleasantly surprised. Affordable, easy to load and clean, and extremely accurate. For bullets I would recommend Barnes T-EZ or TMZ since all copper will give you greater penetration. For powder I would highly recommend Blackhorn 209 over sugar or citric acid based propellants like Triple 7 or Pyrodex that are filthy, corrosive, and require swabbing between shots. You'll need to buy a funnel and powder measure for the Blackhorn 209 but you'll have more flexibility developing a load over using pellets.

 

[BullSlinger]

If I am not mistaken I think Colorado like New Mexico outlaws the use of Buckhorn 209 for black powder ML hunting. It is considered a smokeless powder by Department of Game and Fish. It sucks but that is the rules we have to play by.